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June 4, 1944 - World War II: Allied forces capture Rome
June 6, 1944 - World War II: The invasion of France begins with Allied troops coming ashore in Normandy
June 15, 1944 - World War II: The Allied invasion of the Marianas begins with landings on Saipan
August 25, 1944 - World War II: French forces liberate Paris
September 17, 1944 - World War II: American and British paratroopers land in Holland as part of Operation Market-Garden
October 23-26, 1944 - World War II: US naval forces defeat the Japanese at the Battle of Leyte Gulf, opening the way for the invasion of the Philippines
December 16, 1944 - World War II: German forces launch a massive offensive in the Ardennes, beginning the Battle of the Bulge. It ends in a decisive Allied victory the following month
February 9, 1945 - World War II: HMS Venturer sinks U-864 in the only known battle where one submerged submarine sank another
February 19, 1945 - World War II: US Marines land on Iwo Jima
March 8, 1945 - World War II: US forces secure the Ludendorff Bridge over the Rhine
April 1, 1945 - World War II: Allied forces invade the island of Okinawa
May 2, 1945 - World War II: Berlin falls to Soviet forces
May 7, 1945 - World War II: Nazi Germany surrenders to the Allies, ending the war in Europe
August 6, 1945 - World War II: The B-29 Superfortress Enola Gay drops the first atom bomb on the city of Hiroshima
September 2, 1945 - World War II: The Japanese surrender aboard the battleship USS Missouri ending the war in the Pacific
December 19, 1946 - First Indochina War: Fighting begins between French and Viet Minh forces around Hanoi
October 21, 1947 - Indo-Pakistani War of 1947: The war starts following the invasion of Kashmir by Pakistani troops
May 14, 1948 - Arab-Israeli War: Following its declaration of independence, Israel is attacked by its Arab neighbors
June 24, 1948 - Cold War: Berlin Blockade begins
July 20, 1949 - Arab-Israeli War: Israel makes peace with Syria ending the war
1950s
June 25, 1950 - Korean War: North Korean troops cross the 38th Parallel beginning the Korean War
September 15, 1950 - Korean War: United Nations troops under General Douglas MacArthur land at Inchon and push the North Koreans back to the Yalu River
November 1950 - Korean War: Chinese forces enter the conflict, driving UN forces back over the 38th Parallel.
March 14, 1951 - Korean War: Seoul is liberated by UN troops
June 27, 1953 - Korean War: Fighting ends following the establishment of a cease-fire between UN and North Korean/Chinese forces
July 26, 1953 - Cuban Revolution: The revolution begins following an attack on the Moncada Barracks
May 7, 1954 - First Indochina War: The French fortress at Dien Bien Phu falls effectively ending the war
November 1, 1954 - Algerian War: National Liberation Front guerrillas attack French targets across Algeria beginning the war
October 26, 1956 - Suez Crisis: Israeli troops drop into the Sinai, beginning the conquest of the peninsula
1960s
April 15-19, 1961 - Cuban Revolution: The American-backed Bay of Pigs invasion fails
January 1959 - Vietnam War: The North Vietnamese Central Committee issues a secret resolution calling for an "armed struggle" in South Vietnam
August 2, 1964 - Vietnam War: The Gulf of Tonkin Incident occurs when North Vietnamese gunboats attack American destroyers
March 2, 1965 - Vietnam War: Operation Rolling Thunder begins as US aircraft start bombing North Vietnam
August 1965 - Indo-Pakistani War of 1965: The conflict begins when Pakistan launches Operation Gibraltar in Indian Kashmir
August 17-24, 1965 - Vietnam War: US forces begin offensive operations in Vietnam with Operation Starlight
June 5-10, 1967 - Six-Day War: Israel attacks and defeats Egypt, Syria, and Jordan
November 3-22, 1967 - Vietnam War: American forces win the Battle of Dak To
January 21, 1968 - Vietnam War: North Vietnamese forces launch the Tet Offensive
April 8, 1968 - Vietnam War: US troops relieve the besieged Marines at Khe Sanh
November 21, 1970 - Vietnam War: Special Forces raid the North Vietnamese POW camp at Son Tay
1970s
April 29, 1970 - Vietnam War: American and South Vietnamese forces begin attacking into Cambodia
December 3-16, 1971 - Indo-Pakistani War of 1971: The war begins when India intervenes in the Bangladesh Liberation War
March 30, 1972 - Vietnam War: The People's Army of North Vietnam begins the Easter Offensive
January 27, 1973 - Vietnam War: The Paris Peace Accords are signed ending US involvement in the conflict
October 6-26, 1973 - Yom Kippur War: After initial losses, Israel defeats Egypt and Syria
April 30, 1975 - Vietnam War: Following the fall of Saigon, South Vietnam surrenders ending the war
July 4, 1976 - International Terrorism: Israeli commandoes land at Entebbe Airport in Uganda and rescue the passengers of Air France Flight 139
December 25, 1979 - Soviet-Afghan War: Soviet airborne forces enter Afghanistan beginning the conflict
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